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Pope John Paul II’s Will Culpepper has signed a letter of intent with Centenary College to play football.
“It’s a great opportunity and I’m excited to be playing there,” said Culpepper, who is a Bogalusa resident. “It was cool to have two other guys from our team sign there. That doesn’t happen very often with three people from the same school signing with the same college.”
His teammates who signed with Centenary are Cameron Couture and Pierce Williams.
Culpepper played center this year, but said he can play anywhere on the offensive line and has experience at all positions on the line.
“Center this past year was fun,” Culpepper said. “I enjoyed it. They’ve all got their upsides and downsides.”
This was Culpepper’s first year playing center.
“Transition took a little time to get used to because you have to snap and then block,” Culpepper said. “I had to get that hand-to-eye coordination. That came fairly quickly. A lot of reps, not even in pads. Just simple drills to get it down.”
Culpepper has been an all-district player the last two years.
This season, he was a first-team center and he was a second-team tackle in 2021. Culpepper was also one of Pope John Paul II’s captains.
Academically, Culpepper has a 4.0 weighted grade point average and he made a 29 on his ACT.
“Obviously going to college is an academic focus,” Culpepper said. “You’re a student/athlete not an athletic student. It’s about getting your degree. The sport aspect keeps you disciplined and it keeps you entertained. Sports is a way to learn discipline. It’s a great sport. It’s a brotherhood. You make a lot of friends, but it’s better than that because you’re going for a common goal.”
Culpepper said that he is thankful to his parents Joe and Ann Culpepper.